CUMBERLAND – The Prince Edward County High School boys basketball team overcame a slow start at Cumberland on Wednesday night to pull away for a 58-38 victory over the Dukes in the CHS Gymnasium.

The Eagles, who defeated Randolph-Henry on Monday night in their season opener, turned up the pressure in the second half to pull away from the Dukes, who were playing in their season opener.

The two teams will play each other once more on Friday night at the PECMS Gymnasium around 7:30 p.m. (WVHL 92.9 FM).

“We decided at halftime to change the tempo of the game and dial up the pressure,” said PECHS head coach James Scott. “We thought if we could get the ball up the floor quicker, we could beat their trap, and it worked.

“We also started to take and hit good team shots. We weren't doing that in the first half. We were forcing too many bad shots.”

The Eagles led 15-10 at the end of the first quarter, as both teams were battling typical first-week form. A three-pointer by Derek Robertson gave PE an 18-10 lead one minute into the second quarter, before Cumberland got hot and went on a 10-2 run on baskets from Bo Winbush (two free throws) and field goals from Travon Taylor, Keandre Jones, Harry Bailey, and Dione Booker.

The balanced scoring by the Dukes didn't hold up past that spurt, however. A tip-in by Amonte Vaughan with 38.0 seconds left in the half gave the Eagles the lead, and a foul shot by Bailey cut the Dukes' deficit at the break to 22-21.

The teams traded baskets over the first three minutes of the second half. A three-pointer by Deitrich Brown gave the Dukes their final lead of the night at 29-28 with 5:20 left in the third.

PE responded with a quick flurry of points from Marquis Fitzgerald, Cleon Watkins and Villonte Eanes to give PE a 34-29 advantage with four minutes left.

Prince Edward's Antonio Jones scored all nine of his points over the final 3:24 of the third quarter as part of a 9-2 run that gave the Eagles a 45-34 lead with 55.8 seconds to play.

PE led 47-34 at the end of the period, and extended its advantage over the final eight minutes by out-scoring the Dukes 11-4. Tequan Banks scored six of his ten points in the final quarter.

The Dukes were led in scoring by Booker and Bailey, who had nine points apiece. Prince Eward placed three players in double figures. Vaughan led the way with a game-high 11 points, while Eanes and Banks had ten points apiece. Jones tallied nine and Malik Babney scored seven.

“I was pleased with the adjustments we made in the second half,” said Scott. “That's something we didn't do well last year.”

Prince Edward had a very uncharacteristic finish in the Southside District in 2011-12. The Eagles finished last among the five teams in the district.

“That was no fun,” said Scott. “We aren't used to being there, and I think that really has motivated the kids over the summer and into the season. We had a great summer workout, and after we discussed what we needed to work on, they went out and did that. Hopefully, we will be able to carry that off-season work over into the year.”

Prince Edward, which is known as a team that will zone an opponent to death, will have to rely on that defense in order to turn things around. Last year, good defensive efforts were overlooked, because of the Eagles' inability to put the ball through the basket.

“We stressed that,” said Scott. “I think we saw it tonight. When we took good shots, they went in. When we forced them, we let our opponent hang around. The same thing will hold true when we get into district play. We will always play strong defense, but we need to make sure we play smart when we have the ball.”

The Eagles will be one of the younger teams in the Southside, however. Eanes and Banks, both sophomores, hold starting roles. Young teams usually don't fare well in the talented, but very physical district.

“That will be a concern for us. Brunswick will be head and shoulders above the rest, but from there, we're all basically the same. We're all good teams that will play pretty well outside of the district, but once we get into the league and start beating up on one-another, we'll have to play until one team wins and the other loses, which will give some good teams records that may not reflect how good they are.”